Assessment of content and quality of thyroid nodule management information on Chinese video-sharing platforms

Abstract As short videos have emerged as a promising medium for disseminating health information, the quality and reliability of thyroid nodule (TN) management content on video platforms require critical evaluation. On November 12, 2025, the top 120 videos returned on each platform using the prespecified composite search were screened. Ultimately, 151 eligible videos were included in this cross-sectional study (Bilibili, n = 76; TikTok, n = 75). Five distinct quality-related domains were assessed: overall educational quality and usefulness, information reliability and balance, source transparency and accountability, patient understandability and actionability, and coverage of selected TN-specific management elements, using the Global Quality Score (GQS), modified DISCERN, Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) benchmark criteria, Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool (PEMAT-A/V), and the study-specific Video Integrity 5 checklist, respectively. Spearman’s rank correlation was used to analyze relationships between video characteristics and quality-related scores. Videos on Bilibili were significantly longer than those on TikTok (median, 2.46 vs. 1.35 min; p < 0.001). In unadjusted comparisons, TikTok videos had higher GQS, JAMA, and Video Integrity 5 checklist scores than Bilibili videos; however, none of the six predefined quality-related outcomes remained significantly associated with platform after adjustment for uploader category, publication age, and video duration. Videos uploaded by medical professionals scored higher than those uploaded by non-professionals in overall educational quality, information reliability and balance, source transparency, and TN-specific management coverage. A large proportion of videos lacked key transparency indicators, with 88.74% lacking literature citations and 82.78% lacking conflict-of-interest disclosures. Associations between audience engagement metrics and quality-related scores were generally weak and inconsistent across platforms. Although 76.82% of the sampled videos were uploaded by medical professionals, limitations in source transparency, balance of presentation, and coverage of key TN management elements remained. These findings may inform future efforts to improve the transparency and clinical contextualization of patient-facing TN management information on short-video platforms.